YES, we summitted!! YIPPEE!! NO, we're not thru yet.

Hello out there...FINALLY! Yes, it has indeed been 3 months since our last post. How truly absurd that must seem...and yet...and yet. You see, finding a computer out here in these woods be nearly impossible. The trees don't seem to boot up so well. And then when you get into town, well, believe it or not, it's harder still.

However...we are still at it. We are still alive and kickin...and yes, sometimes the trail kicks our booty, tambien. But....LOOK AT US...we summitted Katahdin. On September 14. Wowzer...was that coolio! For many folks, that would be the exclamation point at the end of their long adventure. For Ripple and Sabi, however...it was more of...well...an exclamation point in the "middle" of the adventure, but a screaming exclamation point all the same. We got a great day that was cool and misty on the climb up, and then cleared when we were at the top and gave us some amazing views to behold. And then it took us hours upon hours to complete the arduous descent...and the long hike back to camp. Turns out, it was our first 20+ mile day of the journey. Not intentional, but it sure made it all the more memorable. We strolled into camp just about midnight...completely spent, ate some dinner, and passed out into our sleeping bags. But when we awoke in the morning, we were grinnin ear to ear. (Or at least, that's how I am choosing to remember it now ; ) )

yessiree...that little waving hand belongs to sabi.

ripple, however, thought that wading out into that sea of piled rock could wait for another day.

and a few other pics from other days...

how many fingers do you see???

perplexing it all be....

More pics on the snapfish link below. You may notice the atlantic ocean in a few of em...bar harbor and acadia national park...my (ripple) pops and his wife carmen came to visit us for a few days. We had soooo much fun!! And ate some yummy seafood (and got a few extra showers in too!! Yippeee!) Thanks dad!

Love to you all...and lotsa fun too!!

Sabi and Ripple

(in Andover, Maine)

http://www2.snapfish.com/earthlink/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=3500190022/a=1387723022_1387723022/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=earthlink/

from Dalton, Massachusetts...with love

hello friends and family! we hope you are all surviving the heat sweeping across the land...as are we. we write to you from dalton, massachusetts, where we've been resting for the last couple days. last night even in air conditioning! oh my!! how we looooooooooooved that bit of reprieve.

we've now passed through 8 states and walked over 700 miles.

needless to say, our feet are a bit sore, but our spirits are still soar-ing!

that's virginia, west virginia, maryland, pennsylvania, new jersey, new york, connecticut, and now massachusetts. wowzers!

next comes vermont, new hampshire, then maine...before training/bussing/flying back down to the shenandoahs in virginia where we started and walking south with the beautiful colors and cooler temps. yippeeee!!

it's been amazing, difficult, awe-inspiring, maddening at times (we have mosquito wars every night after we've zipped into the tent...a kill only counts if you've got a body to show for it! ; ) )...and the experience of a lifetime. so much beauty and quietness, lyrical birdsong, big wild creature-eyes looking into our own...searching for the connection. laughter, love, and a deep appreciation for all that is wild and free. and we've met wondrous kind souls all along the way, so friendly, helpful...eager to hear of our adventures, and glad to share in our story. i'm so amazed sometimes that my legs (ripple speaking here) continue to carry me along so many steep climbs and rugged descents. i'm so grateful for this experience. immensely grateful.

too many pictures (and too slow of a computer) to load this way, so we'll put em on snapfish again. hope you enjoy looking and thanks for joining us on this adventure! love light and beauty to you all....

ripple and sabi

http://www2.snapfish.com/earthlink/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=3500190022/a=1387723022_1387723022/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=earthlink/

hope it works!!

Thru the Mid Atlantic... Almost

Howdy there Ladies and Gents- writing yall (or as they say up in these parts- you's-iz) ; ) from the peaceful villa of Greenwood Lake, NY- just oer the line from Jersey...

Becca and I survived the rockstrewn hills of PA in one piece -albeit quite sore & real glad for our boots (as opposed to the signature thru-hiker running shoes) at the end of some days...

Our last town stop was in Delaware Water Gap, right where the Delaware river cuts thru the easternmost ridge of the Appalachians, and the dividing line between PA and NJ. Wonderful hostel accommodations at a local church, combined with most delectable food at the local bakery kept us in town for a couple of days, but lack of technology, and a thru-hiker style pub crawl in nearby Stroudsburg our first night in town, rendered us incapable of doing much, blog wise in our time there... (2am is A LOT later than it was back in the college days, ya know?)

Anyhoo, leaving WaterGap put us in NJ directly, and smack into the midst of AT bear country! (yeah, I always thought NJ was just industry and city too, but the NW corner is as beautiful as any country we've seen thus far, and filled with all manner of beasts!) During our 6 days in the state, we saw as many bruins, a couple quite up close and personal (ever had to bounce rocks off something big and hairy that outweighs you by a good hundred pounds?? puts your place in the food chain into perspective, lemme tell ya! ; ) ) As it turns out, they were all more interested in our packs full of yummy grub than us, and we passed thru bear country with nary a scratch (but one heckuvalotta skeeter bites! - the lil demons are out in force, folks- Aaaarrggghh!!)

So the last two days? Resting and rejuvenating in Greenwood, and getting ready for New England- we'll be to the Hudson River in about
40 miles, and with any luck, catch a commuter bus into the Big Apple for some sightseeing and museum visits-
a bit of culture to balance out our (my?)  HillBilly tendencies- ; )
Had lots of cool pics to upload for you all here today, but, as luck would have it,
Blogger is having none of it today... = (
So, lets try Snapfish instead-
Try this link to see a collection of some of the favs- starting from the beginning, down in good ol
TN... Got some John Denver for ya, Becca style, and lots of variety-
 as you'd expect from these two!
http://www2.snapfish.com/earthlink/thumbnailshare/AlbumID=3500190022/a=1387723022_1387723022/otsc=SHR/otsi=SALBlink/COBRAND_NAME=earthlink/
(yep, thats all one web-addy, luckily all ya have to do is click it, well, that and sign up for a free snapfish account...)

Until next time, Folks-
Sabi n Ripple

More pics from Hamburg, PA

greetings sportsfans! well, we survived tornadoes and record-breaking heatwaves to find ourselves in sunny coolish hamburg, pa this fine friday afternoon. not much eloquence circling in the brain cavity at the moment, so we'll just post some more beautiful pix of the journey and hope that keeps you all entertained until a more suitable time when the language flows more freely...hope you are all well, healthy and happy wherever you may be!





the beautiful light of an impending storm...yummy!

delicious sunsets...

seas of fernery

they call this one a "creek"

a river of stones

warm wide farm fields

and creatures...

he never moved the whole 15 minutes we lunched with him next to the spring.

this is Miiiiiister Toad! (that's how he pronounced it)

did you know swans mate for life?

sentries...

the only rattler we've seen so far...along a ridge just before the descent into pine grove, pa.

he was about 3 ft. long and pretty thick around the center.

cool little wing-ed creature...with two big eye-lookin spots.

fellow hiking kinsfolk...

this is the "statesman"...he's doing the trail in sections, one state at a time.

in 3 years he'll finish them all at the age of 72.

this is "orange bear" from belgium.

this is caitano...a year and a half wolfhound/akita mix...who carries his own weight!

next to sabi is "dude," caitano's papa...from philadelphia.

vicki and pat, owners of the doyle hotel in duncannon, pa

the doyle hotel...over 100 years old..used to cater to the well-to-do.

now caters to the smelly hikers!! yippeeee!!

this is "white wolf"

yummy ice cream on a sweltering afternoon in duncannon.

(after a few beers and a fun sloppy game of pool!)

don't they have any other clothes???

they (whoever "they" are) call this move the pasty hiker riverdance!

Aaaauurrrrrrrrrrooooooooooooooooooo!!!

yip yip yip yoowwrrooooooooooooooooo!!

the peak in the background was the highest peak in the shenandoahs.

the green tunnel as it's called...goes on and on and on...

beginning to see more evergreens...

can you say...BUGGY?!!!

an example of the free 3-sided shelters available along the trail.

sometimes they'll be every 5 miles or so, othertimes much further apart.

we've stayed in these about 5 times, but at this time of year, they are quite full and

very buggy! we like our tent!

a few weeks back, we were huddled in a shelter like this when a huge thunder and lightning storm passed through. we stayed up for probably an hour just trying to photograph the lightning through the trees.

soooooooooooooo cool!

next town stop...delaware water gap, pa.

more from there!!

Luv and Light to you all!!!

big hugs, sabi and ripple